GKN plc is a British engineering company formerly known as Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds and tracing its origins back to 1759 and the birth of the industrial revolution. ... 1759 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... The Industrial Revolution was the major technological, socioeconomic and cultural change in the late 18th and early 19th century resulting from the replacement of an economy based on manual labor to one dominated by industry and machine manufacture. ...

History

Foundations: 1759 to 1899

The origins of GKN lie in the founding of the Dowlais Iron Company in the village of Dowlais, Merthyr Tydfil, Wales by landowner Wyndham William Lewis. John Guest was appointed manager of the works in 1767. He discovered coal on Lewis's property and used it to replace charcoal for smelting. He became a partner in the business in 1782 with Lewis and salesman William Taitt who later became his son-in-law. // Introduction Merthyr Tydfil (Welsh: Merthyr Tudful) is a town and county borough in the traditional county of Glamorgan, south Wales, with a population of about 55,000. ... National motto: Cymru am byth (Welsh: Wales for ever) Waless location within the UK Official languages English(100%), Welsh(20. ... John Guest can refer to: John Guest, United States Navy officer John Josiah Guest, British industrialist John Guest, John Josiahs grandfather This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... 1767 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Coal is a fossil fuel extracted from the ground either by underground mining, open-pit mining or strip mining. ... Charcoal is the blackish residue consisting of impure carbon obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents of animal and vegetable substances. ... Chemical reduction or smelting is a form of extractive metallurgy. ... 1782 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ...

Thomas Guest succeeded his father in 1787. Though there have been claims of steam power at Dowlais as early as 1753, it is more likely that it was Thomas who introduced steam for blowing the furnaces with a Watt steam engine in 1795. 1787 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... A steam engine is a heat engine that makes use of the potential energy that exists as pressure in steam, converting it to mechanical work. ... 1753 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Diagram of the Watt Steam Engine The Watt steam engine was the next great step in the development of the steam engine after the Newcomen engine. ... 1795 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ...

By the time John's grandson, John Josiah Guest became sole owner in 1815, the company was the largest iron and steel producer in the world, becoming the first organisation to license the Bessemer process for steel production. The first Bessemer steel was rolled at the works in 1865. John Josiah Guest (February 2, 1785 - November 26, 1852) was an engineer and entrepreneur. ... The Battle of New Orleans 1815 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... General Name, Symbol, Number iron, Fe, 26 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 8, 4, d Appearance lustrous metallic with a grayish tinge Atomic mass 55. ... // Steel is a metal alloy whose major component is iron, with carbon being the primary alloying material. ... Bessemer Converter, Schematic Diagram The Bessemer process was the first inexpensive industrial process for the mass-production of steel from molten pig iron. ... 1865 is a common year starting on Sunday. ...

On John Josiah Guest's death, the works was administered by his trustees, G. T. Clark and Henry Austin Bruce, 1st Baron Aberdare. After the death of the former in 1898, John Josiah's son, Ivor Bertie Guest, 1st Baron Wimborne, became active but was distracted by other interests and responded to an approach in 1899 from Arthur Keen. George Thomas Clark (May 26, 1809 - April 6, 1885) was a British engineer and antiquary, particularly associated with the management of the Dowlais Iron Company. ... Henry Austin Bruce, 1st Baron Aberdare (April 16, 1815 - February 25, 1895) was a British statesman who served in government during the late 19th century, most notably as Home Secretary and as Lord President of the Council. ... 1898 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Ivor Bertie Guest, 1st Baron Wimborne, was the son of Lady Charlotte Guest, translator of the Mabinogion, and an uncle-by-marriage of Winston Churchill. ... 1899 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Arthur Keen (January 23, 1835 - February 8, 1915) was a British entrepreneur, the Keen in engineering firm Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds. ...

Nuts and bolts: 1900 to 1965

On 9th July 1900, the Dowlais Iron Company and Arthur Keen's Patent Nut and Bolt Company merged to form Guest, Keen & Co. Ltd. July 9 is the 190th day of the year (191st in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 175 days remaining. ... 1900 is a common year starting on Monday. ... Arthur Keen (January 23, 1835 - February 8, 1915) was a British entrepreneur, the Keen in engineering firm Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds. ... Arthur Keen (January 23, 1835 - February 8, 1915) was a British entrepreneur, the Keen in engineering firm Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds. ...

Nettlefolds Limited, a leading manuacturer of fasteners, had been established in Smethwick in 1854 and was acquired in 1902 leading to the change of name to Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds. Joseph Henry Nettlefold (September 19, 1827 - November 22, 1881) was a British industrialist, the Nettlefold in Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds. ... Map sources for Smethwick at grid reference SP0287 Smethwick (pronounced Smethick) is a town adjacent to Birmingham and West Bromwich in England. ... 1854 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... 1902 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...

These mergers heralded half a century in which the name GKN became synonymous with the manufacture of screws, nuts, bolts and other fasteners. The company reflected the vertical integration fashionable at the time embracing activities from coal and ore extraction, and iron and steel making to manufacturing finished goods. Screws come in a variety of shapes and sizes for different purposes. ... A nut is a type of hardware fastener with a threaded hole. ... Screws come in a variety of shapes and sizes for different purposes. ... A fastener is a hardware device that mechanically joins or affixes two or more objects together. ... In microeconomics and strategic management, the term vertical integration describes a style of ownership and control. ...

Beyond the fastener: 1966 to the present

In 1966, in a programme of diversification, the company acquired Hardy Spicer Limited of Birmingham, England, a manufacturer of constant-velocity joints. Historically, such joints had had few applications, even following the improved design proposed by Alfred H. Rzeppa in 1936. However, in 1959, Alec Issigonis had developed the revolutionary Mini motor car which relied on such joints for its novel front wheel drive technology. The massive expansion in the exploitation of front wheel drive in the 1970s and 1980s led to the acquisition of other similar businesses and a 43% share of the world market by 2002. 1966 was a common year starting on Saturday (link goes to calendar) // Events January January 1 - In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa ousts president David Dacko and takes over the Central African Republic. ... This article is about the city in England. ... Royal motto: Dieu et mon droit (French: God and my right) Englands location within the UK Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population - Total (mid-2004) - Density Ranked 1st UK 50. ... Cross-section through a typical outer CV joint (Saab 96) Constant Velocity Joints or CV joints allow a rotating shaft to transmit power through a variable angle, at constant rotational speed, without an appreciable increase in friction or play. ... Alfred H. Rzeppa was an engineer working at Ford who invented a version of constant velocity joint in 1926. ... 1936 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1959 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Sir Alec Issigonis (1906-1988) was a designer of cars, now remembered chiefly for the development of the Mini in 1959. ... The Mini is the name of a small car produced from 1959 to 2000, and the name of its replacement (known as New MINI) launched in 2001. ... Front wheel drive is the most common form of engine/transmission layout used in modern automobiles, where the engine drives the front wheels. ... 1970 was a common year starting on Thursday. ... 1980 is a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... 2002 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

During the 1980s, GKN sought to invest its earnings from constant-velocity joints in developing other nascent technologies. However, little success attended these efforts and in 1991 the company resolved to abandon further research and to redivert its development efforts towards its constant-velocity joint business in which it was facing increasing competition from Japan. During the same period, the company finally withdrew from the manufacture of fasteners and from steel production. Changing its name to GKN plc, it diversified into military vehicles, aerospace and industrial services. 1980 is a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... 1991 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Look up aerospace in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Aerospace refers to the broad field of air and space travel and the associated research. ...

In 1994, GKN acquired the helicopter manufacturing business of Westland Aircraft. In 1998 the armoured vehicle business was sold to Alvis plc, and subsequently incorporated into Alvis Vickers Ltd. In July 2000 Finmeccanica and GKN agreed to merge their respective helicopter subsidiaries to form AgustaWestland. 1994 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ... A helicopter is an aircraft which is lifted and propelled by one or more large horizontal rotors (propellers). ... Westland Aircraft was a British aircraft manufacturer located in Yeovil in Somerset, formed just before the start of World War II. During the war the company produced a number of generally unsuccessful designs, but their Lysander would serve as an important liaison aircraft with the RAF. After the war the... Alvis Vickers logo Alvis Vickers Ltd was a defence company formed by the combination of Alvis plcs defence business with Vickers Defence Systems in 2002. ... Finmeccanica is Italys second largest industrial group. ... AgustaWestland is a helicopter design and manufacturing company based in Italy and the United Kingdom. ...

In 2004 GKN completed the sale of it's 50% shareholding in AgustaWestland to Finmeccanica. AgustaWestland is a helicopter design and manufacturing company based in Italy and the United Kingdom. ... Finmeccanica is Italys second largest industrial group. ...

From the late 1990s, the company built a major business in powder metallurgy. // Events and trends The 1990s are generally classified as having moved slightly away from the more conservative 1980s, but otherwise retaining the same mindset. ... Powder metallurgy is a forming and fabrication technique consisting of three major processing stages. ...

Bibliography

• Jones, E (1987) A History of GKN Volume 1: Innovation and Enterprise 1759-1918
• Jones, E (1990) A History of GKN Volume 2: The Growth of a Business 1918-45

External links

• GKN plc official website